Stone Age people made sun stone 'sacrifice' to banish

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2 of the sun stones, little pieces of shale engraved with a sun theme.
(Image credit: National Museum of Denmark)

A volcanic eruption in 2910 B.C. might be the factor Neolithic individuals on a little island in the Baltic Sea buried numerous stones embellished with plant and sun images, archaeologists recommend in a brand-new research study.

“We have known for a long time that the sun was the focal point for the early agricultural cultures we know of in Northern Europe,” Rune Iversenan archaeologist at the University of Copenhagen, stated in a declarationThese stones “were probably sacrificed to ensure sun and growth.”

In a research study released Thursday (Jan. 16 )in the journal AntiquityIversen and coworkers detailed the discovery of 614 stone plaques and plaque pieces on the Danish island of Bornholm, situated south of Sweden in the Baltic Sea. The things were discovered spread throughout a palisade ditch. Based upon the pottery design and the radiocarbon dates from charcoal discovered close by, the scientists concluded that the embellished stones were intentionally put there around 2900 B.C.

The large bulk of the stone plaques were made from black shale– a dark, flaky sedimentary rock discovered on the island– while others were made from quartz and flint. The majority of the plaques were likewise embellished with incised styles, consisting of sun and plant themes.

A handful of these “sun stones” have actually been discovered on Bornholm formerly, the a great deal of them discovered in one location stimulated the scientists to look for a possible factor for the special deposit.

Related: Ritually bent Bronze Age sword uncovered in Danish bog is ‘really unusual discover’

(Image credit: Iversen et al./ Antiquity Publications Ltd.)

A historical area through a ditch where the majority of the personalized stones were discovered in the Neolithic Bornholm website.

Neolithic individuals appear to have actually buried the stones at a crucial point, as the scientists found that the location was changed into a more strong, prepared website simply after the stones were transferred. Maybe a natural catastrophe or weather occasion that triggered crops to stop working activated the stone “sacrifice,” the scientists recommended in their research study.

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Based upon comprehensive proof of ancient environment occasions, the scientists made a connection in between the burial of the stones and a volcanic eruption in 2910 B.C. that likely adversely impacted weather condition and harvests throughout the Northern Hemisphere.

“These depositions could have been made during a time of stress with the purpose of bringing back the sun and re-establishing agricultural production,” the scientists composed in their research study. “They could also have been made when the climate crisis was over, as an act of celebration for the return of the sun.”

After the stone deposit, a brand-new sort of culture started on Bornholm, the scientists described in the research study. Individuals stopped constructing enormous burial places, started developing more prepared settlements, and formed brand-new social media networks with individuals in Scandinavia. The value of the sun might not have actually reduced, as Neolithic societies throughout Europe relied on the sun for their harvest.

“It is quite simply an incredible discovery, which demonstrates that depositions honouring the sun is an ancient phenomenon, which we encounter again in South Scandinavia during the climate disaster caused by a volcanic eruption in the year 536 AD,” research study co-author Lasse Vilien Sørensenan archaeologist at the National Museum of Denmark, stated in the declaration.

Kristina Killgrove is a personnel author at Live Science with a concentrate on archaeology and paleoanthropology news. Her posts have actually likewise appeared in places such as Forbes, Smithsonian, and Mental Floss. Killgrove holds postgraduate degrees in sociology and classical archaeology and was previously a university teacher and scientist. She has actually gotten awards from the Society for American Archaeology and the American Anthropological Association for her science composing.